Tag: rnb

Day 7: Ultimaybe by 1010 Benja SL

You won’t find a more unique, more confusing artist name between January 1st and December 31st 2019 than today (at least within the digital confines of this blog). 1010 Benja SL. Hailing from Tulsa, Oklahoma, the singer-producer has a concise, minimal, yet ambitious discography which includes his first two singles, Boofiness and Wind Up Space released on Young Turks (whose alumni mailing list boasts the like of The xx and Sampha) and his debut, six track EP Two Houses. The standout for me is Ultimaybe and it has got airtime on Annie Mac’s BBC Radio 1 show.

It is a conglomeration of genres and is an excellent example of the breadth of talent. Bordering on indie at points, it feels like it would be just as at home being blasted from a festival tent as the sun goes down over a British field as it would soundtracking an alternative hipsters morning run. It is very dramatic and, at it’s core, a funky reach for the sounds of the 80s whilst maintaining a hugely creative experimental touch that 1010 Benja SL is becoming more and more synonymous with.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

Day 6: Be Your Girl by Teedra Moses (KAYTRANADA Edit)

The first remix of this series/project/whatever this is, actually self-identifies as an edit. New Orleans soul singer/songwriter Teedra Moses’ 2004 single Be Your Girl from her debut album Complex Simplicity (which for me is a fairly dull, cliché name for an RnB album that hides a decent freshman body of work) is the foundations of today’s track. The original samples The Awakening (1970) by Ahmad Jamal and, as a very well received RnB track, it was crying out for a KAYTRANADA “edit”.

KAYTRANADA (in real-life going by Louis Kevin Celestin) is a young producer who is a product of the Montreal streets having been born in Haiti. He is as adept at DJing as he is producing music, as he is remixing tracks, as he is creating his own work. With a 2015 tour, a residency on BBC Radio 1 and a Polaris Music Prize-winning full debut album in 99.9%. With little done to Moses’ warbling vocals, he brings in a series of low-key dance-inspired drums over a monotonous (in the best way) house-y bassline. The track is the delicately treads the line between a dance track to pre-drink to and a soundtrack to a 4am smoke on a high-rise balcony. It does what a great remix should, maintain the authenticity of the original song and artists whilst bringing a fresh perspective and a signature water mark of the remixer. If this song makes you explore the discography of either artist, I’ll be a happy chappy.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

Day 5: Agent Orange by Pharoahe Monch

One of my favourite rappers of all time, Pharoahe Monch, hails from Queens New York and is one of the most underrated lyricists ever (in my humble opinion). He emerged in the late 90’s, originally as part of a duet with fellow Queens rapper Prince Poetry called Organized Konfusion. They disbanded due to lack of sales of their projects Organized Konfusion, Stress: The Extinction Agenda and The Equinox, however they were one of the most critically acclaimed underground hip-hop acts of the 90’s, some feat when you consider the caliber of rap music coming out of New York and wider America in this era.

He later launched a solo career (which makes him sound like a petty, castaway member of a talent show boyband; he’s not) on legendary hip-hop label Rawkus Records, known for cultivating the careers of Mos Def, Talib Kweli and Big L, to name a few. Today’s track is the final single he released on Rawkus Records, Agent Orange, named after the incendiary chemical weapon used by the US military during the Vietnam War. It was released in 2003 and samples the 1991 song Releasing Hypnotical Gases. Both are war tracks referencing chemical warfare and this track in particular embodies the social justice Monch often wields as a weapon. This is most notable on his 2007 album Desire (on which Agent Orange is included as a bonus track) which is anarchic and is the epitome of Pharoahe Monch as an artist. It might not be Bob Dylan, but this is an exceptional war record. Agent Orange is an exceptional record period, and is a social commentary/history lesson for the youth who’s pacifism and disconnect from the American government is inherited rather than crafted.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

Day 4: Nobody Knows by Russ

So as many of you will know, the majority of new music is released on Fridays. Because of that, every Friday will be a new song that I think is hard. The first of the New Music Fridays is Nobody Knows by Russ.

Russ, born Russell Vitale, is a hip-hop artist of the generation coming out of the new-age Mecca of rap, Atlanta Georgia. He has been simmering just below the surface of mainstream hip-hop since he started making music in 2007 at the age of 14, with his first song recorded 4 years later. Since then, he has released 12 studio albums (not a typo. 12. As in 5 more than Coldplay, 4 more than Phil Collins and 3 more than Radiohead) and was one of the first artists to embrace Soundcloud culture. 11 albums and 87 singles were released on the platform before Columbia Records came knocking in 2016 and to this day he has amassed nearly 750,000 followers on his Soundcloud page alone.

Known for rapping with a chip on his shoulder and doing basically everything himself (writing, producing, rapping, singing, mixing and mastering), he has gained more than a smidge of infamy. He is held in disdain by a lot of the community for posing on the gram wearing a t-shirt that read “How much Xans and lean do you have to do before you realize you’re a fucking loser”, which some claim made a mockery of drug addiction (in my humble opinion it has been interpreted harshly and is a solid message. Had it been championed by a less controversial artist then it may have been a different story).

The song itself gives me MAJOR Stan vibes and talks about the negatives of fame, from substance abuse to his failed attempts at repairing his parent’s fragmented relationship. Newly released as a single after being featured on Just In Case, a three-song EP that was shared just before Christmas 2018, Nobody Knows shows Russ’ ability as a lyricist, producer and is a testament to his work ethic, continuing to put out great hip-hop music.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

Day 3: Sativa by Jhene Aiko

Day three and we are still going, unlike my resolve to workout daily and my commitment to Dry January. With a lot of RnB influences already, today’s track lives and breathes Rhythm and Blues, oozing it out of every note. Jhene Aiko’s Sativa features Swae Lee, one half of Rae Sremmurd, and is a perfectly balanced journey that brings out an unusual yet refreshing side to the hip-hop/pop star that has been taken out of his comfort zone of adding a rap verse to solidify a chart position for stars such as Ellie Goulding and French Montana. Aiko is an excellent accompaniment for him, guiding him into her world of considered and raw RnB records and is, for me, the standout track from her 2017 psychedelic project Trip.

If you haven’t mulled over Aiko’s work, you really should. She has been making music since her early teen years in the first years of the century and has since gone on to collaborate with some of the world’s biggest artists, including Drake (Nothing Was The Same), Childish Gambino (Bed Peace) and Kanye West (Sailing Not Selling). She also released a collaborative album with rapper Big Sean, forming a dual project TWENTY88 and releasing an eponymous EP in April 2018 on GOOD Music. Well worth a listen as an introduction to Aiko and Big Sean.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

 

Day 2: Back Again by Moss Kena

I’m feeling very underground. My first record was fairly obscure, but for January 2nd I’m picking a song with a minuscule 931 listens on Soundcloud (at the time of writing). As a huge Little Mix, 1D and Ariana fan, this will swiftly change I’m sure, but currently my New Years Resolution of “being boujee af” is going swimmingly.

Moss Kena is a newish artist from West London who has been backed by Annie Mac, Zane Lowe and someone called Kendrick Lamar? After releasing a beautiful, stripped back cover of the latter’s These Walls from Kendrick’s third studio album To Pimp A Butterfly, he released an EP entitled One + One in November 2018.

The stand-out track from the project for me is Back Again and I have high hopes for Moss Kena. Very reminiscent of a British Khalid, soulful with a trap drum beat. Give him and his EP listen, and don’t forget the chocolate fondue, Netflix and chill.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex

Day 1: Benjamins by CVIRO

So, for the first of 365 songs, I picked an incredibly rogue song. Benjamins by CVIRO (pronounced Cairo, as in Egypt) is probably not familiar to the majority, however it reworks a huge track from Puff Daddy which featured some HUGE artists. The Notorious B.I.G, Lil Kim and The Lox all add to the single It’s All About The Benjamins (1997; 2 year old Nick properly bopped to this one) which give CVIRO’s hook for this particular song.

Released in 2014, it was a result of a multi-single, ongoing collaboration with producer GXNVXS. CVIRO is from Australia and provides some RnB/Soul vocals to a true Hip-Hop anthem. Primarily released on Soundcloud, the single got a lot of traction and has, at the time of writing, amassed 380k listens. I first found it in 2015 when compiling my annual summer playlist (over the next 364 days you’ll find a theme. I make one playlist a year. Many of these will be featured on one of my trendyily-named playlists) and since then I’ve always come back to it. I found it fresh to have such a huge hip-hop song, especially from the golden era of the 90’s, to be reworked, and have pop and RnB elements effortless incorporated to make an ultimate sunny balcony banger.

 

Spotify Playlist Link: https://spoti.fi/2CKuVex